A 2-year fellowship with a direct pathway to practice ownership — for clinicians drawn to relational work that asks clients to slow down, understand their patterns, and find their way back to each other. Led by Chandni Patel, LCSW, LCADC, a couples specialist and co-founder of Therapy Aligned.
IMPORTANT: Therapy Aligned does not currently provide NJ licensure supervision. Provisionally licensed applicants (LSW, LAC) must have their own external supervision already arranged prior to joining the fellowship. The clinical mentorship and group supervision provided within this fellowship are separate from state licensure supervision requirements.
The Couples Therapy Fellowship under Chandni Patel is designed for clinicians who want to develop genuine expertise in working with couples and relational systems — not just as an add-on to individual therapy, but as a distinct clinical practice with its own conceptual depth, assessment framework, and intervention repertoire.
Chandni’s approach to couples work is grounded in her belief that clients are the experts of their own lives. She creates clinical space rooted in safety, curiosity, and respect — helping partners slow down conflict cycles, understand what drives their patterns, and rebuild the connection that first brought them together. Fellows will develop fluency in attachment-based couples therapy, Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) concepts, Gottman-informed approaches, systemic thinking, and the particular skill of holding two people’s emotional realities simultaneously in the room.
Beyond couples work, this fellowship provides a strong foundation in individual therapy as well. Many clients who seek couples therapy are also carrying individual mental health and substance use histories — Chandni’s strengths-based, co-occurring-informed perspective helps fellows hold that complexity with competence and care.
Chandni is also fluent in English, Gujarati, and Hindi, and this fellowship welcomes clinicians who are interested in serving multilingual or multicultural communities. Fellowship cohorts are expected to include 7 to 10 fellows, ensuring meaningful supervision access and a robust clinical learning community.
2-year couples therapy specialization — individual supervision weekly (provisional fellows), biweekly group supervision for all fellows, and a supervised caseload including both couples and individual work. All supervision included at no additional cost. Fellows are expected to maintain a minimum of 10 client sessions per week. Completion leads to eligibility for your own TA-affiliated practice.
Chandni is a dual-licensed clinician and co-founder of Therapy Aligned specializing in couples therapy, co-occurring disorders, and strengths-based care. A former EMT, Field Liaison at Rutgers University School of Social Work, and Clinical Supervisor with experience across the full continuum of behavioral health care. Fluent in English, Gujarati, and Hindi.
View Chandni’s full profile →Chandni supervises the way she practices — with safety, directness, and genuine investment in each fellow’s clinical development. Couples work requires a particular kind of mentorship, and supervision in this track reflects that.
Carry a supervised caseload including both couples and individual clients from day one — building the dual fluency that excellent relational clinicians carry.
Weekly individual (provisional) and biweekly group supervision focused on couples dynamics, attachment patterns, and strengths-based relational intervention.
Training in EFT, Gottman-informed methods, family systems theory, and co-occurring presentations within relational contexts.
After 2+ years in good standing and full licensure, graduate and open your own TA-affiliated practice built around your couples specialty.
This fellowship is for clinicians who are genuinely drawn to relational work — who want to develop the specific skill of working with two people in the room and the systems between them. Prior couples therapy experience is welcomed but not required. What matters is curiosity about relational dynamics and a willingness to learn.
Eligible applicants include fully licensed clinicians (LCSW, LCADC, LPC) and provisionally licensed clinicians (LSW, LAC) with an external supervisor already in place. Clinicians with multilingual skills or experience working with diverse cultural communities are especially welcomed. The fellowship pathway is built around three milestones: a minimum 2-year commitment, achieving full licensure during or by the end of the fellowship, and remaining in good standing throughout. These three milestones form the pathway to practice ownership — each one an investment in the practice you are building.
Fully licensed in NJ (LCSW, LCADC, LPC) or provisionally licensed (LSW, LAC) with external supervision already in place. Minimum 2-year commitment, full licensure achieved during or by end of fellowship, and good standing throughout. 7 to 10 fellows per cohort. Applications reviewed on a rolling basis.
Fellows are expected to maintain a minimum of 10 client sessions per week. Supervisors in the Supervisor Track are expected to maintain a minimum of 5 client sessions per week (3 sessions per week for supervisors who have previously held personal payer contracts). Fellowship sizes are expected to be between 7 and 10 fellows per cohort.
Ready to build a clinical practice rooted in relational depth? Submit a fellowship inquiry to connect with Chandni.
Start Your ApplicationTakes about 5 minutes. Applications reviewed on a rolling basis.
Chandni leads two fellowship tracks at Therapy Aligned. Explore the other below.
